Speaker 1: Hello listeners, Happy New Year, twenty twenty six. This is
episode four of season seven, and as they say on
YouTube all the time, let's get into it. This episode,
we returned to England for what was once the Still
of the Night storyline, and we returned to the company
of Damo and Rose, and we pick up where we
left them at the end of season six, namely fleeing
from those OCU mercenaries aboard Roses train as they left Aldowitch.
You know, as Underwood Finch being taken into custody. You
remember that, don't you? Of course you do? Okay, good, well,
I guess it's time for the Underwood and Flinch saga.
Written and performed for podcast by Mike Bennett. Season seven,
The Devil of Claverton, Episode four. This podcast is intended
for an adult audience. Listener discretion is advised. This would
you find? Rose told the driver stop here. The black
cab pulled over to the curb and the driver announced
the fair here, said Rose, sitting forward as if she
had payment in her hands, and I have a little
something extra for you. The driver turned around and looked
into Rose's waiting eyes, wherein he immediately forgot all about
fairs his route and destination, and the passengers in the
back of his cab. Those people were Rose, Damo, Karen,
Bernadette and Louise. They got out the pantry, women hurrying
out of the rain, and under the shelter of a tree,
one of many that lined the pavement. Where are we,
asked Damo as he took their bags from the boot
of the taxi Highgate Cemetery. Isn't there? Were Karl Marx's yeah,
Rose nodded to the opposite side of the street. That
is it there? Daimo turned to see a wall set
with wrought iron railings that ran down the street as
far as he could see. On its other side was
a hedge, and beyond that what appeared to be a
wood gloomy beneath the rain heavy sky and the canopy
of overhanging trees. Well, shame, we don't have time to
pay him a visit. With the bags now at his feet,
he slammed the boot and waved to the driver another time,
said Rose. Once the taxi was gone. These clouds could
clear away at any moment, and we don't want to
be outside when they do come. She picked up her
suit case and another belonging to one of the pantry women,
and started walking briskly down the road. Damo picked up
the other two suit cases and nodded to the women
to go on. Where does his ploak live? Then asked Karen,
trailing first in Rose's wake, just along here? Is he
going to mind all of us just landing in on
him like this? If he does, I would change his mind.
Come quickly. Damo looked up into the falling rain. There
was no silver lining to these clouds. The weather should
hold for a good while yet, but he kept up
Rose's pace, if only to avoid getting an ear bashing
from her should he lag too far behind. She had
told him Aside earlier that she had had this destination
in mind from the moment they boarded the train at Aldwich,
though she hadn't said as much to Underwood. He didn't
need to know, and in the event that he was
interrogated by Volkman's people, it was better that he didn't.
Daimo thought back to their departure from Oldwich. As they
had pulled away from the platform, he'd looked out through
the dirty windows, watching the expressions of the mercenaries where
they stood amongst a sea of rats. He'd grinned and
given them a wave, imagining how pissed off they must
have been to have been so soundly defeated without even
a shot being fired. Then their train had slid into
the tunnel and begun rattling along toward the main Piccadilly Line.
There Rose had taken them northbound past Russell Square to
then stop the train just short of the tunnel mouth
of a platform at King's Cross station. Here they had disembarked,
and Rose had led them back along the tracks to
a door. It was unlocked. Beyond it was a stairway
used by maintenance staff from King's Cross. Rose had led
them up and then down a passageway to a door.
Here they had stopped, and Rose had put an ear
to the door, listening for announcements and the first footfalls
of early morning commuters. When she was satisfied things were
busy enough, they had stepped out into the flow of
passengers and made their way up to the Northern Line platforms,
and from there they had taken a train up to Highgate.
En route. Rose had told him little of their destination.
There was a man she knew with a house big
enough to accommodate all of them for the day and
possibly longer. They would need to decide between them what
they wanted to do next and whether they should stay together,
But for now, the most important thing was to find
shelter from the daylight. She said that there soon to
be host was a guy she had known and been
feeding on since the nineteen sixties. He would be delighted
to see her, she said. He loved her as all
her throlls did. At Highgate Station, Rose had fascinated a
ticket collector at the turnstile and commanded him to let
them through, which he had done without batting an eyelid.
And then, as they were approaching the station exit, Daymo's
pent up dread of what light conditions would meet them
outside melted away at the sight of pouring rain. The
kind of dark and gloomy London morning he had once
hated with a passion he now greeted with joy. Outside
Rose had hailed the taxi, and then they had settled
in for the short ride to this place, Swain's Lane.
Here it is, said Rose, pointing to a house on
her right. It was set back behind a wooden fence
that stood about eight feet high. A white, two story
building largely covered with Virginia creeper. Rose went to an
intercom at the gate and pressed the buzzer. She had
to press it another time before. After about a minute,
a man's voice came through to them. Yes, Basil, it's Rose.
Let me in. For a few moments there was no reply.
Then warily Rose, yes, mine, shats open the gate and
let me in. It's raining for God's sake. After a
short delay, there was a buzz and the lock on
the gate was released. Rose pushed the gate open and
beckoned to her companions to follow her as she went through.
There was no front garden to speak of, just a
square of concrete yard, half of which was taken up
by a neglected looking red Jaguar X jay that Daimo
guest had to be at least thirty years old. The
personalized number plate read B D C one. Daimo was
about to ask Rose what it stood for when the
front door opened and an old man stepped out from
a dark hallway. Despite his age, he stood tall and straight,
with his chest and chin out, his blue eyes regarding
them keenly from beneath heavy gray brows. He wore a
beautiful silk dressing gown burnt orange with a paisley pattern,
and beneath it a pair of striped pajamas. On his
feet a pair of brown leather slippers, and on his
head a colorful patterned cap with a golden tassel. Hello,
Deimo thought we got a ripe one here. Basil watched
in silence as they came into his yard. Once the
last of them was in, Rose closed the gate and
turned to face him. She had, Deimo thought, a mixed
air of guilt and defiance about her, like a teenage
daughter who has been out all night despite warnings not to,
and now come home to face her father on the doorstep. Hello, Basil.
Basil seemed somewhat at loss for words, his eyes moving
between Rose and her companions, lingering over the women before
coming to rest on Damo, at which point he found
his tongue. Rose. Who who were these people? My friends?
Said Rose, advancing towards him. I'm sorry to arrive without
notice like this, but look, she looked skyward. It is
day we need shelter, and you you were the first
person I thought of. I was, but Rose, it's been
twelve years, twelve years. If you vanished I thought you
were dead, and now now I'm the first person you
think of, Jesus Christ. Do you have any idea how
I worried, how I wept and mourned. Oh, don't be
so melodramatic, Rose snapped, it's pissing down. Can we come
in or can't we? Basil stood firm in the doorway,
his jaw set, but Daimo could see he was weakening.
His indignation, heartfelt though it may have been, was intended
only as a rebuke. Rose was right underneath it all.
He still loved her. He could no more refuse her
than he could a winning lottery ticket. You called me mine, shats,
said Basil, my treasure. Why would you do that? I've
always called you that, but you abandoned me. Does one
abandon one's treasure? Rose? Rose glanced up at the sky.
The clouds remained thick and unbroken above, but there was
a brightening in the east. Basil, can we please have
this conversation inside there I will explain, but out here
is dangerous for me as well, you know. Basil again
looked over at Damo and the pantry women, clearly considering
what to do next. Then he turned back to Rose
gave a curt nod and stepped outside of the doorway,
with her head bowed to keep the rain from her eyes.
Rose marched up to the door. She was about to
pass through it without slowing, when Basil put an arm
across the doorway, barring her entry. She stopped. Let me
see your face out here in what passes for daylight.
Rose turned her face to his and saw his eyes
were glistening with tears. He stared at her in undisguised
awe and reached a hand to touch her cheek. Not
a day older, he said, in a low voice for
her ears, Only exactly as you were when first we
met the eternal, the imperishable. Rose, dame O and the
women watched, all of them, feeling as though they were
intruding on a very private moment, but unable to look
away as after a few moments, the relentless determination Rose
had displayed since boarding the train at Aldwitch crumbled at
the old man's touch. She took his hand, brought his
fingers to her lips, and kissed them. Hello, my sweet.
Basil moved closer and put his arms around her. Rose
did not resist, but reciprocated, feeling his body against hers again,
smaller frailer diminished, as she had known he would be,
and then her eyes too began to fill with tears.
I thought you, I thought you were dead, said Basil,
his voice breaking with emotion. I know, I am so sorry,
but please I must get indoors ay and my friends.
Can we do that? Please? Yes, he sniffed, regaining his composure. Yes,
of course, come in, Come in. He turned to the others,
and his face lit up with a smile. Please forgive
my appalling manners. Come on in out of the rain.
Carrying their bags, Demo and the women filed past, offering
greetings as they went. Basil pointed them down the hall
to the bright kitchen at the far end, with instructions
to put the cattle on. When they were gone, rose,
stepping into the comforting gloom of the hallway, he said,
and Robin, how is he? He's upstairs asleep, like any
normal person would be this of the day. But as
you know, the mornings and when I do my best work,
you're still writing. Naturally, I'm a writer. What else would
I be doing? But I haven't seen anything new of
yours in the shops for well quite some time. Oh,
Basil raised his eyebrows as he hadn't forgotten me completely.
Then Rose touched his cheek, main leveling, I have never
forgotten you for a moment. But surely you remember I
told you many times that when my human friends grow old,
I tend to withdraw from their lives. It is the
curse of my kind that we never stop losing those
dear to us, over and over, generation after generation. The
loss becomes unbearable if you don't find a way of
dealing with it. My way is to leave those I
love before they leave me, and to carry them in
my heart as they were. I know it sounds callous,
but she shrugged. This is my way, then, So why
didn't you just say that's what you are going to do.
I would have understood. Rose shook her head sadly. No,
you would not have. People never do. It is always
so heart breaking, the emotions, things never go well. So
so are you you think I didn't feel those emotions anyway?
Do you think I didn't believe me, Basil? I did.
I felt the loss of you just as keenly as
you did me. But once the separation is done, it
is done forever, like death. This is why I never returned,
even though many times I wanted to. So then why
are you here now? She sighed and lowered her eyes.
I I am afraid it is entirely for selfish reasons.
I need somewhere to stay. My friend's also just for today.
Whatever Basil had been hoping to hear, he wasn't entirely
sure himself. This certainly wasn't it, He frowned. What you mean?
This is all I am to you now, a place
to crash out for the day because you've been caught
short of your lair by the sunrise. No, buzzl it
is not like that. She think that, after all the
pain of separation and loss I've put you through, put
us both through, that I would turn up here simply
for my own convenience. No Jesus, look at this. She
lifted her suitcase. I am homeless on the run. It
is the police, a special department dedicated to the destruction
of vampires. They have rated my home. They are still
there now, turning it over for evidence. Note out tearing
the place apart. She broke off as her voice became unsteady.
She was only realizing these things as she spoke them aloud.
She hadn't had time until now. Her home, her possessions,
her most intimate things, all were being tossed, scoured and
sifted for evidence. Everything I own is lost, my life
for years and years, and now I, my friends and
I we have nowhere. Basil, moved by her grief, drew
her close and put his arms around her. Oh god, no,
I'm so sorry, Rose, I had no idea. Of Course,
you must stay here for as long as you need,
I insist. But what about Robin do you think he
will mind? Of course you won't mind. He loves you
almost as much as I do. She'll be thrilled to
have you, all of you. By the way, who are they,
these friends of yours, Rose, who had managed to prevent
herself from succumbing completely to tears, sniffed. The women are
my food. They live with me for this purpose, but
they are like my family. Also. The man, he is
another vampire, newly turned, not by me, though I have
taken him up under my wing. I see, So is
he this London vampire they've been talking about in all
the papers. Not a human serial killer but the real thing. Oh,
the media has this all wrong. You're right, it is
a real vampire. But there were two of them, independent
of each other, both neophytes. One is dead and my
companion is the other. Don't worry, so he is perfectly safe.
A pussycat. Really, I wouldn't care if he was leather
faced from the Texas chainsaw massacre. Darling said, Basil, if
he's all right by you, he's all right by me.
Rose chuckled. I remember this film. You took me to
see it and I nearly walked out. It was horrible. Yes,
and the only reason you stayed is because I let
you feed on me while I was watching it. Hah ah, ironic.
How you wanted to leave due to the bloodshed, but
stayed in order to shed my blood. He laughed. Well,
I won't be taking any more of that. Rest assured
I wouldn't mind if you did. I'm always happy. No,
I say this kindly, Basil, but you are too old,
both you and Robin. It is not safe. The girls
will provide Damien and I with aught we need. Damien.
Is there his name, this, sir apprentice of yours? Yes,
so he prefers Damo, but I don't use it. I
feel it is too bouncy in some mouth. Dam O
Basil intoned thoughtfully, Yes, it is rather bouncy. I like it,
and you will like him too. He is funny and kind,
all the things of vampire should be. Eh ha. All right, well,
let's get inside and you can introduce me to him
and the others over a cup of tea. You still
take it black, I presume He bent to pick up
her suitcase, but on feeling the weight of it, stopped. Oh.
I do apologize, Rose, but would you mind carrying your
own bag? I'm afraid my back isn't what it was.
Rose picked up her case, of course, not Chivalery's old hat. Anyway.
She waved a hand in the direction of the kitchen.
Go on after you please. This podcast continues after the
break Welcome Back. After introductions and the making of tea,
the group moved into the living room, which was situated
at the front of the house. The curtains were still
closed from the night before, and Basil turned on the
light on seeing the alcoves on either side of the
fireplace were lined with books from floor to ceiling. Louise
went over to peruse them, while the others seated themselves
on the bottled green leather Chesterfield sofa and armchairs. Rose
then explained to Basil what had happened and how they
had come to be there. When she was finished, Basil
let out a long sigh and said, oh my word,
you've had quite a knight. Haven't you makes anything I
could make up Pale in comparison? So do you think
the police might find anything that might lead them here?
Rose shook her head. No, what about do wherever it
is you're going? Where is that, by the way, Ireland,
said Daimo, to which Rose added, it's one option, though
we haven't decided yet. We've barely had any time to
think about it, as you can imagine. Ah, yeah, said Daimo,
But you know what's the best option? Rose? Getting out
of a country where the cops are after is always
going to be safer than sticking around on it. And
Ireland's the only country we can get to without passports.
How come, asked Karen common travel area. They'll do passport
checks in the airports, but not in the fairies. I've
been over and back a million times and no one's
ever asked to see my passport. Yes, but I know
nothing of this country as a place for vampires, said Rose.
Where would we live. One needs to be careful when
entering onto another's territory, at least in England. I have
some idea of whether vampires are at least thats of
Underwood's family and assuming Zamalias hasn't killed them all Wexford.
My parents retired there. My dad's dead now, but my
mom and my sister are there. We could rent a
house in the country. No, what am I thinking of?
We just take one, fascinate the owners and move right
and beside them. The chances of some place like kill
Mockradge being a vampire's territory pretty much nil. Can you
imagine him going down to the local supervalue to get
toilet rolled in a copy of the People paper? It's
sticking out like a sor Tom. Rose held up a
hand to stop him talking. Please, Damien, I can't do
this now. I need sleep. We talk about it later.
Basil reached the cross and laid a hand on Rose's knee.
All welcome to stay here for as long as you like.
No arguments, I insist. Rose shook her head. No, Basil,
you are very kind, but five people, it's too much
to ask. We will be out of your hair tonight,
not at all. Basil chuckled, you can't be in my hair,
because I don't have any. He pulled his cap off
his head to reveal a completely bald scalp beneath. Can
I see your hat, said Bernadette, reaching out a hand. Suddenly,
Basil handed HER's cap. Bernadette fondled it, admiring the ornate red,
gold and green embroidery. Is that silk thread? Yes, it
was a gift from my partner. He turned to Rose.
My old cap was falling to bits. It's lovely, said Bernadette.
I love the tassel. What sort of hat is it?
It's a Nepalese smoking cap, but for me, it's a
thinking cap, my fount of ideas. She looked up curious. Hey,
I'm a writer. Didn't Rose tell you no, said Bernadette,
with a hint of wonder. What sort of thing do
you write? Oh? Novels, stories? That sort of thing? Really?
Anything I might have read? Well, that depends. Do like horror?
She wrinkled her nose, M not really, I like marrying Keys,
Jane Green, stuff like that. Ah. I see, well, then
you most likely never have read B. D. Coulter. Be D.
Coulter said, Damon, I fucking love be D Coulter Rabbitt Badgers.
That book was fuckin' deadly? Is that you? Are you him?
Basil accepted his hat back from Bernadette and settled it
back on his head with a smile. At your service, Stamo.
Damo was wide eyed with admiration. Fuck me, he laughed
and got to his feet, crossed the room and thrust
out a hand to Basil, who accepted it to then
have it pumped vigorously. Pre D Coulter. My big brother
had all your books. I used to get lend of
them up of him them and Stephen King, Clive Backer
and the like. I saw a lot of his books
on your shelf, said Louise. They're are you? Yes, they're
all me. Demo went over to the bookshelves and scanned
them until he hit a clump of hardback, beady Coulter titles.
He pointed at them. Can I have a look by
all means, said Basil, though do be careful, they're first editions.
Demo ran his fingers over the spines of the Coolter books,
lighting on Hangman, Vampire, Rising screams in the night, and
then Rabid Badgers. He took it down reverently and admired
the cover, on which a fiery eyed badger with foam
flecked jaws glowered at him from d darkness. Janey, would
you look at this? This was the one we had,
same cover. I'm so glad you like it, Tamo. It
was my big breakthrough book in the seventies. My agent's
idea animal horror was all the rage at the time,
Rachel said to me. He turned to Rose and dieded aside.
Did you know, Rachel my agent at the time. Rose
shook her head. Basil shrugged, well, well, lovely woman smoke
like a train kild her in the end. But anyway,
he returned to Daimo. She said, if I wanted to hit,
and I did obviously. I'd been writing for years, but
only with modest success Thrillers's Beady Culte, Western's Jim Saddath,
even Romance Stacy Lane. He chuckled. Oh, they kept me
entiewriter ribbons, but not much else. Anyway, Rachel said I
should turn my hand to horror and write some vicious
animal story. Jim Herbert had the Rats, Guy and Smith
had the Rabs. Dogs and cats had also been taken,
so there really wasn't much left for me to play with.
England's not known for its vicious wild life, as you know.
But I threw a few suggestions at her. Plague of
the Adders, Foxes, Knight of the Ferrets, and then rabbit badgers.
Rabies was a big fear at the time, public information
froms on television posters with skulls, you know, the whole thing.
I was half joking when I suggested the title, but
she said that's it, that's the one, and of course
she was right. Well, good woman, Rachel, said Daimo, sliding
the book back into its place. He then took down
Vampire Rising. On the cover was a beautiful woman, all
dark eyes and cleavage, with a trickle of blood running
from the corner of her mouth. He turned it to
face Basil. Inspired by anyone, I know, only a little,
said Basil. He squeezed Rose's knee. She would and allow
me to write anything too close to home for obvious reasons.
But it's hard not to be inspired by one so inspiring.
Oh shut up, said Rose, giving his hand a playful slap.
Flattery will get you nowhere, Basil laughed at my age.
I'm afraid I haven't got the energy to go anywhere,
not at you hunters ravishing as ever, Dear, have you
read this, Rose, said Daimo, twitching the copy of Vampire
Rising at her. Of course I have read all Basil's books,
even his early ones and other names. Are they here too,
Daimo asked, turning back to the shelves. Some said, Basil,
The others are in my study. Can I see him?
Not now? Damien said Rose. We need to get some rest.
Then this evening we have to agree our next move
so that we can be on our way. Basil took
her hand. No, please stay at least a few nights, Rose,
We have so much to catch up on, and Robin
hasn't even seen you yet. I would love nothing more, Basil,
but I fear our staying here could put you both
in danger from whom the police. This Coleridge fellow you
were talking about, What can he do to us? If
by some miracle he were to track you down here,
then we would just be your hapless, spell bound victims.
This man is not the police as you knows them, darling.
He and his friends are quite ruthless when it comes
to hunting my kind and they have a small army
at their disposal as we have seen tonight. Trust me,
it is best if we leave a But how is
he gonna find us, Rose asked Damo. Sure, there might
be some CCTV of us in the stations we were at,
but we kept our heads down. We can't be sure
of what they saw, Damien. They may have a clear
shot of one or more of us, and these they
can release to the Nash from the media. The connection
with what the London vampire sounded to me like Miguel
who was getting the blame for all that. It doesn't matter.
They were just saying I wanted in connection with something else.
They don't need to be specific, like the shooting at Hoban,
said Basil. So what said Rose? Last night? There was
a shooting at Hoban underground station. It was on the
radio this morning. Basil went on to describe what he
had heard on the radio news, a developing story of
a suspected gangland incident in which police and transport workers
had been gunned down during the rescue of an arrested prisoner.
When Basil had finished, Rose turned to Damo with bailful eyes.
I told you, didn't they This is what happens when
you go creeping off on your own. You thought your
encounter with Flinch at Hobin ended with him giving himself
up to the police. Well apparently not. This was probably
the start of a chain of events that had the
fucking O see you to my home? Whoa whoa, whoa ooh,
said Daimo, How the fuck do you work that out?
He just said it was a young Landing, yes, and
whose gang? Who else? But Underwood's mob, the sect, and
the prisoner they rescued was your friend, Flinch. Believe me,
I know you think they'd leave him in the custody
of the oc ule to sing like the canary. Oh no,
this was the Sect, I guarantee it. Okay, so maybe
it was, But that wasn't how the OCU found us.
David didn't know where I was going, even I didn't
in anyway. Underwood himself admitted it his hind that led
him to yours. The Collridge guy followed him. But that
would have found us anyway. Dumkoff, you ran in my direction,
the direction of an abandoned station just around the corner.
If not last night, then today or tonight at the latest.
She got angrily to her feet and walked to the
fireplace to stare into the large gilt framed mirror that
hung there, muttering all the while in German. Damo looked
from her to Basil, who shrugged sympathetically before turning to
Rose and saying, well, perhaps it was just as well
things happened as they did. Then at least you got away.
You may have not been so lucky if they had
raided you today with no warning from your Lord Underwood. Yeah,
said dame O. Rose said nothing, but have no fear.
Basil continued, There's no chance of any sneaky raids here.
Robin and I will watch over you in the daytime.
If they should track you here, then DI seriously doubt
they will. Sounds to me like you've covered your tracks
as skillfully as you always have. Then we'll see them
coming and raise the alarm. You could fascinate them and
send them on their way with nothing to report. Nothing
there but a couple of old pufters. Gov, that's what
they'd say. M Rose continued to stare into the mirror,
her hands tightly clenched behind her back. That sounds kind
of nice, doesn't it, Rose? Said? Karen I don't know
about you or anyone else, but I really like a
bath and a bit of time to just chill, you know.
Louise nodded, Yeah, maybe just another day so we can
plan properly what we're going to do and have some
nice food, added Bernadette. Not that we'd expect you to cook, Basil.
We could do it a proper kitchen and the right ingredients.
We'd love to cook, wouldn't we. She looked to Karen
and Louise for confirmation, which they gave. Rose remained silent.
With a sigh, Basil got up and went over to her. Cautiously.
He placed a hand on her shoulder. When she allowed it,
he put his arm around her and eased her gently
closer to him. It's all right, Rose. She yielded to
his pressure and let him comfort her. He brought her
head close to his face, his lips to her hair,
and kissed her. Come on, now, you must be exhausted.
I'll show you up to your rooms and you can
all get a good day's sleep. All right, I'm sorry, Basile,
she said softly. Then she turned to Demo and, after
a moment's pause, reached out a hand to him and
Damian too. I'm sorry. I know it wasn't your fault
they found us. It was just I was upset. It's
been a very stressful night. Daimo took her hand and
came over. For fox sake, Rose, forget about it. I'm
the one who's sorry, all right. Basil felt a sudden
vacancy under his arm as Rose moved away from him
and into Damo's embrace. Of course, he thought they were together.
He had wondered as much earlier, but had felt it
impolite to ask. Now he had his answer. A bittersweet
smile touched his lips. Once it had been him in
her arms, not just as a meal, but as Demo
so clearly was now as a lover. He'd never been
attracted to a woman before Rose or since. But then
Rose wasn't simply a woman. She was a vampire, and
his attraction to her transcended any conventional sexual orientation. He
had been so much younger then when he had first
met Rose. He had been younger than Daimo was now.
But here she was in Demo's arms, unchanged from that
first night she had found him and fared while he
He turned to the mirror and saw his elderly reflection
looking back at him. Okay, said Rose, I think it's
time we went to bed. Basil forced a smile on
to his face and turned back to his guests. Yes, yes,
of course. Now we have two spare rooms, two beds,
one single, one double, but we have an inflatable mattress somewhere,
and if you take the cushions off the sofa, that
should sleep everyone comfortably. Enough to Rose and Damo, he said,
I'm assuming you too will be sharing the double bed. Yes,
said Rose, thank you, Basil, very good. Well, you'll be
pleased to know we still have the same old heavy
curtains in the guest rooms, horribly unfashionable though they are.
I suppose I never lost hope that one day you'd
come back. He smiled. But Rose saw the pain he
was trying to hide. She took his hand in both
of hers, brought it to her lips and kissed it.
Thank you, my dear friend. Not for the first time,
you save my bacon, He squeezed her hand in reply,
not at all. Rose. Come on, let's grab some seat
cushions and I'll show you to your rooms. I'll give
Robin all your news over breakfast. That way, when you
wake up this evening, you won't have to repeat it
all over again. Oh and it goes without saying if
you'd like to feed on us, No, said Rose. At
your age, it is too dangerous, but thank you, Basil shrugged,
having expected as much. Well, then perhaps I could procure
someone for you, a young friend, an actual friend, or
a prostitute. I prefer to say escort so much nicer,
don't you think, Rose paused in her gathering of the
seat cushions. Actually, yes, I we, She nodded to include
Demo would be very grateful. It will give the girls
a rest, thank you, but only if it's not too
much trouble. Yeah, thanks a million buzz, added Demo. For
just a second, Basil eyed Demo coolly, don't thank me, Damo,
he thought, I'm not doing it for you. Then his
face broke into a smile. Of course, not no trouble,
no trouble at all. Now, come on, it's nearly nine
am and way past your bedtime. And so Demo and
Rose of owt a temporary home if they want it.
But for how long will they go to Ireland? Stay
in England, maybe even stay in London I guess it
depends on what they decide when they wake up next.
In Underwood and Flinch season seven,